Teek

ISBN: 0-88677-846-8 Order from: Amazon.com

A suspense novel that suffers from an overused plot and two-dimensional characters.

Reviewed by David on December 31, 1999

Genre: Science Fiction (ESP, Conspiracy Theory)

Synopsis: Allison Boyle, seventeen, is a pretty typical high-schooler, unusual only in her periodic intense headaches. When certain events cause her mother to panic, and ruthless government agents to pursue her, Allison starts to discover the secrets of her parentage. However, Allison's gifts may not be enough to save her from an unscrupulous, murderous organization, nor their fanatical leader.

Full Review: Regrettably, many of the plot devices of this book—government genetic experiments, ruthless secret agencies, adolescent girls with developing ESP powers, and several others have been used before, most clearly in King's Firestarter. The similarity is even acknowledged by one of the characters in this novel, however, despite this conscious attempt to distance the plot from Steven King's novel, very few original details are developed. Another unfortunate aspect is the simplistic, and frequently implausible characters and their interactions. Occasionally, the plot development becomes flat enough to rival a Saturday morning cartoon.

Simplistic characters, especially the villains, and a highly derivative plot, make reading this novel largely a waste of time.

Overall: 4; Plot: 4; Characters: 4; Style: 4; World-building: 4; Originality: 4;

ISBN: 0-88677-846-8 Order from: Amazon.com